Garage



p 30, 1958 Gmsus 2,853,745 GARAGE Filed Aug. 13, 1956' 2 Sheets-Sheet 1as 44 5o 49 5 33 42 mvmok PETER GIPSLIS Unite :aes Patent fiice GARAGEPeter Gipslis, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, as-

signor of one-half to Erwin Henchert, Vancouver, British Columbia,Canada Application August 13, 1956, Serial No. 603,489

11 Claims. (Cl. 201.13)

This invention relates to improvements in garages primarily for motorvehicles, but which may be used for other purposes.

An object of the present invention is the provision of a garage whichmay be swung upwardly to an open position to permit a vehicle to bemoved into or out of it, whereby the garage may be made ,only largeenough to fit over the vehicle.

Another object is the provision of a garage which may be quickly andeasily swung into the open or closed positions by hand.

A further object is the provision of a garage having few moving parts,and which cannot go out of working order.

Most garages today are made large enough to accom-.

modate a motor vehicle with suificient room around it to enablepassengers to get in or out of it while in the garage. This garage issuch that it need be made only large enough to accommodate the vehicle,since it may be swung upwardly to an open position which permits accessto the vehicle.

A garage according to the present invention comprises an open-bottomedhousing having side walls with downwardly and inwardly curving loweredges at one end thereof. The lower edges of the side walls rest on anysuitable fiat base. It is, however, preferred to provide a platform uponwhich the side walls rest. The housing is opened and closed by raisingand lowering the front thereof to cause it to swing around the side wallcurved edges, and counterbalancing means is attached to the back of thehousing above the curves of the side walls to assist in the opening ofthe housing. A plate spring is connected at one end to the back of thehousing above the side wall curves and extends in a curve downwardlytowards the front of the housing, and means is provided connected to theopposite ends of the spring for anchoring said end. The counterbalancingmeans of the plate spring retain the housing in the open position andpermit it to be easily swung to the closed position. It is preferable,although not absolutely necessary, to extend the plate spring completelyacross the housing so that it closes the back end thereof when thehousing is in the closed position.

An example of this invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawingsin which,

Figure 1 is a side elevation of the garage housing in the closedposition,

Figure 2 is a side elevation of the housing in the open position,

Figure 3 is a plan view of the garage as shown in Figure 1,

Figure 4 is a cross section taken on the line 44 of Figure 2, and

Figure 5 is a horizontal section taken on the line 5-5 of Figure 1.

Referring to the drawings, 10 is a garage which com- ,prises a housing12, and, preferably, a base platform 15 upon which the housing ismounted. This platform may .be of any desired construction, but itpreferably includes mediate cross member 22 may be provided. which is.

spaced inwardly from the end member 21, see Figure 5. The housing 10 ispreferably made just large enough to accommodate a motor vehicle. Asmost motor vehicles in common use today fall into three main sizedgroups, namely, small, intermediate and large, housings of differentsizes may have to be provided for the different groups.

The housing is formed with side walls 25 and 26, and a front wall 27.The lower edges 29 and 30 of the side walls normally rest in platformrails 18 and 19, respectively, and these lower edges curve at oneenddownwardly and inwardly thereof at 32 and 33. These curves may extendall the way up to the top 35 of the housing or, as shown, the latter maybe provided with a back end wall 36 which extends downwardly from thehousing top a short way towards the platform. In this case, the loweredges of the side walls curve upwardly to said back end wall. The sidewall curves 32 and 33 extend only ashort distance towards the front orend wall 27 of the housing.

As stated above, the lower edges 29 and 31 of the housing normally reston the platform rails 18 and 19, at which time the garage housing is inits closed position. The housing may be rocked back on the rails 32 and33 into an open position, as clearly shown in Figure 2. At this time,the front end of the housing is far enough in the air to permit avehicle to be driven onto or oi the platform into or out of the housing.An inclined handle 39 may be provided on one or both of the side wallsto provide a grip by means of which the housing may be raised orlowered.

A plate spring 42 is connected at one end to the housing above the sidewall curves. 'In this example, the spring is connected to back end wall36 by means of suitable fastening means such as bolts 44. When thehousing is closed, the plate spring extends in a curve downwardlytowards the front of the garage, and its opposite end is anchored in anyconvenient manner. In the preferred form of the invention, the forwardend of the spring is connected to the intermediate cross member 22 ofthe platform by any suitable means, such as bolts 46. This springpreferably extends over the curved surfaces of the side walls to closethe back end of the housing when the latter is in the closed position,as shown in Figure 1. However, the spring may not extend the full widthof the housing. In fact, parts of it may be cut away so that there wouldbe one or more comparatively narrow plate springs in use. For example,there might be a comparatively narrow plate spring at each side of thehousing.

Counterbalancing means is attached to the back of the housing above thecurves 32 and 33 of the side walls, In this example, thecounterbalancing means comprises a weight 49 secured to the innersurface of back end wall 36 by suitable fastening means such as bolts50, said weight preferably extending across the width of the housing.

Suitable means is provided at the side walls of the housing for keepingthe latter from shifting laterally on the platform. This may be in theform of side bars 52 and 53 mounted on and projecting upwardly fromrails 18 and 19, respectively, to overlap the outer surfaces of the sidewalls when the housing is closed. ,It will be'understood, however, thatthe side walls themselves may be provided with similar side bars whichoverlap the outer edges of the rails when the housing is closed.

In any case, the housing is prevented from shifting laterally even Qwhen it is in the open position since the side rails overlap the portionof the housing still resting on the platform.

It is desirable to provide means for preventing the housing from movingbeyond the normal open position. An arm is provided within the housingat one or both sides thereof for this purpose. In the illustratedexample, a pair of relatively long arms 56 are pivotally connected tothe housingat 57 near the top thereof, each arm extending in an inclinetowards the housing front and to the platform when the housing isclosed, as shown in Figure 1. Each arm has hook means on the free endthereof. This hook means may be in the form of a hook 59 at the free orouter end of the arm, said hook opening towards the back of the housing.A catch 60 is mounted on a platform rail inwardly of and aligned witheach arm 56. The hook of each arm engages a catch when the housingreaches the open position, as clearly shown in Figure 2, to prevent saidhousing from moving beyond the normal open position. This prevents windsfrom swinging the housing back too far. When the housing is open, eacharm 56 has about reached a vertical position. Therefore, any downwardforce exerted by the housing on the arms will not force the lower endsof the arms towards the housing front. Any effort to swing the housingdownwardly at this time, tends to cause the arm pivots 57 to swingforwardly and downwardly about the fulcrum point which is located at thepoint of contact of the curves 32 and 33 with the platform rails.

In order to be able to close the housing, the hook ends of arms 56 needto be moved towards the housing front to permit this action, and meanshas been provided for accomplishing this. A release handle 64 may beprovided at each side of the housing. However, in'ithis example, ahandle is provided atside wall 26 only. This handle is connected to aninwardly projecting shaft 65 which is journalled in the housing. sidewall. The inner end of this shaft is connected by a U-shaped connector66 to another shaft 67 journalled in the side wall 25.

in line with shaft 65. Comparatively long lugs .69 and 70 are connectedto and project downwardly and forwardly from shafts 65 and 67,respectively.

When the garage housing is open, arms 56 are positioned near the lugs 69and 70, at which time said lugs extend substantially parallel with thearms, see Figure 2. When the release handle 64 is swung downwardly, thelugs engage the adjacent arms to move the lower'ends thereof forwardly.Once these arms have been moved a short distance, pressure of thehousing in.a downward direction will force the arms to swing forwardlyinto the position shown in Figure 1.

Any suitable latching means may be used to retain the housing in theclosed position. As the latch does not form part of the invention, nonehas been illustrated or described herein. In fact, the housing willremain in the closed position without any latch.

When it is desired to open housing 12, it is only necessary to raise thefront end thereof. This may be done conveniently by gripping handle 39and moving it upwardly to cause the housing to swing around the curves32 and 33 of the side walls thereof. As the housing swings around thecurves, the fulcrum around which the housing turns shifts rearwardlytowards the back thereof. When the housing first starts to move, theleverage of weight 49 is at a maximum, but this leverage graduallyreduces as the fulcrum shifts towards the back of the housing.Therefore, maximum leverage is available when the most effort isrequired in order to start the front housing moving upwardly. As thehousing continues to move, less effort is required, at this time theleverage is reduced. This prevents the housing from reaching its openposition while traveling too fast. The hooks 59 of arms 56 engagecatches 60 to prevent the housing from going too far. The plate spring42 also helps to swing the housing upwardly. It also exerts its maximumforce atthe beginning of them'ovement since -it' is'under its greateststrain when the housing is closed. As the spring approaches itshorizontal position, as shown in Figure 2, its tension lessens. Thus,the spring serves two purpose, it help to open the housing withoutexerting too much force when the latter reaches the open position, andit closes the the back end of the housing when said housing is moved toits closed position. Furthermore, as the housing moves towards itsclosed position, there is a natural tendency for the speed of movementto increase, but the tension of spring 42 increases at this time so thatit helps to offset this tendency. Therefore, the housing closes gentlywithout the operator having to hold it back during the closingoperation.

What I claim as my invention is:

1. A garage comprising an open-bottomed housing having side walls withdownwardly and inwardly curving lower edges at one end thereof, said endbeing the back of the housing, counterbalancing means attached to theback of the housing above the curves of the sidewalls, said housingbeing opened and closed by raising and lowering the front thereof to.cause it to swing around the side wall curved edges, and a plate springconnected at one end to the back of the housing above the sidewallcurves and extending in a curve downwardly towards the front of thehousing, and means connected to the opposite end of the spring foranchoring said end, said counterbalancing means and the plate springretaining the housing in the open position and permitting it to beeasilyswungto the closed position.

2. A garage as claimed in claintl in which the plate spring extends overthe curved surfaces of the side walls to close the back of the housingwhen the latter is in the closed position.

3. A garage comprising a supporting platform, an open-bottomed housinghaving side walls normally resting on the platform with downwardly andinwardly curving lower edges at one end thereof, said end being the backof the housing, counterbalancing means attached to the back of thehousing above the curves of theside walls, said housing being opened andclosed by raising and lowering the front thereof to cause the side wallcurved edges to roll on the platform, and a plate spring connected atone end to the back. of the housing above the side wall curves andextending in a curve downwardly toward the front of the housing, andmeans connecting the opposite end of the spring to the platform foranchoring said end, said counterbalancing means and the plate springretaining the housing in the open position and permitting it to beeasily swung to the closed position.

4. A garage as claimed in claim 3 including means at the side Walls ofthe housing for keeping the latter from shifting laterally on theplatform.

5. A garage as claimed in claim 3 in which the plate spring is wideenough to close the back of the housing when the latter is in the closedposition.

6. A garage as claimed in claim 3 including at least one relatively longarm pivotally connected to the housing near the top thereof andextending in an incline towards the housing front andto the platformwhen said housing is in the closed position, hook means on the free endof the arm, and a catch on the platform inwardly of and aligned with thearm, the hook means of the arm engaging the catch when the housingreaches the open position to prevent said housing from moving beyond thenormal open position.

7. A garage as claimed in claim 6 in which the arm has about reached avertical position when the housing is open, and including means on thehousing for moving the hook means end of the arm towards thehousingfront when it is desired to close the housing.

8. A garage comprising a supporting platform including spaced parallelside rails, an open-bottomed housing having side walls normally restingon the side rails with downwardly and inwardly curving lower edges atoneend thereof, said endbeing the back of the housing, counterbalancingmeans attached to the back of the housing above the curves of the sidewalls, said housing being opened and closed by raising and lowering thefront thereof to cause the side wall curved edges to roll on the rails,means at the'side walls for keeping the housing from shifting laterallyon the rails, and a plate spring connected at one end to the back of thehousing above the side wall curves and extending in a .curve downwardlytoward the front of the housing, and means connecting the opposite endof the spring to the platform for anchoring said end, saidcounterbalancing means and the plate spring retaining the housing in theopen position and permitting it to be easily swung to the closedposition.

9. A garage as claimed in claim 8 in which the means for keeping thehousing from shifting laterally comprises side bars on the rails betweenwhich the housing side walls are located.

10. A garage as claimed in claim 8 including a pair of relatively longarms pivotally connected to the housing near the top thereof andextending in an incline towards the housing front and to the rails whensaid housing is in the closed position, hook means on the free ends ofthe arms, and catches on the rails inwardly of and aligned with thearms, the hook means of the arms engaging the catches when the housingreaches the open position to prevent said housing from moving beyond thenormal open position.

11. A garage as claimed in claim 10 in which the arms have about reacheda vertical position when the housing is open, and including means on thehousing for moving the hook means ends of the arms towards the housingfront when it is desired to close the housing.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS UNITEDSTATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent-Noo 2,853,745September 30, 1958 Peter Gipelis It ishereby certified that errorappears in the above numbered patent requiring correction and that the;said Letters Patent should read as corrected beloW In the grant lines 2and 12', and in specification, lines 3 and 4, name of assi r ErwinHenchert" read Erwin Heuchert the heading to the printed ghee ofone-half interest Signed and sealed this 12th day of April 1960.,

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KARL H, V AxL-INE Corm'xissioner of Patents

